Protesters hit Minneapolis streets in response to deadly Charlottesville protest

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Protesters in Minneapolis hit the streets to rally against hate in the wake of the deadly Charlottesville protest led by white nationalists and Nazis.

The group started with a rally at the Minneapolis Republican Party Office at 2200 East Franklin Avenue at 5 p.m.

Hundreds of people then marched from Franklin Avenue to Cedar Avenue to Washington Ave, where they crossed I-35W. The group then gathered outside the Hennepin County Public Safety Facility on 4th Ave S.

“We need to stand up to white supremacist thugs,” said Linden Gawboy of Minneapolis. “I don’t think ignoring them will work. I’m here to fight fire with fire.”

Protesters blocked the light rail track, halting light rail service for a short while, while steps away they burned a Nazi effigy. The Minneapolis Fire Department responded, and the fire was put out without incident.

Like many others, Holly Olsen of Brooklyn Park brought her children to the rally.

“It just means a lot to us that our kids see we are against this political atmosphere and we want to make changes,” said Olsen.

Over the weekend, a protest in Charlottesville, Virginia turned violent. A woman died when James Fields Junior ran a car into a crowd of people. Dozens others were injured. Two state troopers, assisting with the response to the protest, died when their helicopter crashed about seven miles away from the city.

Organizers of Monday’s rally in Minneapolis said they were standing in solidarity with the counter-protesters who were attacked by Fields Saturday.